Today’s edition of quick hits.
* In Gaza: “Hours after Israel was accused of making ‘starvation a bargaining chip’ in Gaza, its military launched a wave of deadly strikes across the enclave, killing at least 70 people, Palestinian health officials said.”
* I’ll be interested in learning more about this one: “Mexico’s security chief confirmed Tuesday that 17 family members of cartel leaders crossed into the U.S. last week as part of a deal between a son of the former head of the Sinaloa Cartel and the Trump administration.”
* In Russia: “The head of Russia’s only independent election watchdog was sentenced on Wednesday to five years in prison after being convicted of working with an ‘undesirable’ organization, according to his attorney, charges that rights groups have criticized as politically driven.”
* I’d love to hear a benign explanation for this: “A struggling technology company that has ties to China and relies on TikTok made an unusual announcement this week. It had secured funding to buy as much as $300 million of $TRUMP, the so-called memecoin marketed by President Trump.”
* The latest inflation data wasn’t bad: “Inflation was slightly lower than expected in April as President Donald Trump’s tariffs just began hitting the slowing U.S. economy, according to a Labor Department report Tuesday. … Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the core CPI also increased 0.2% for the month, while the year-over-year level was 2.8%. The forecast was for 0.3% and 2.8%, respectively.”
* A case worth watching: “A coalition of 20 states, most led by Democrats, filed two lawsuits against the Trump administration on Tuesday after it threatened to withhold billions in funding unless the states followed its demands on immigration enforcement.”
* Before you ask, yes, this ruling came by way of a Trump-appointed judge: “Judges around the country have been rejecting President Donald Trump’s Alien Enemies Act invocation. But in the latest ruling on the subject, a judge approved Trump’s bid to use the act to deport Venezuelan citizens who are members of Tren de Aragua — though she said the government must provide more notice under the act.”
* This ruling did not come by way of a Trump-appointed judge: “The Justice Department unconstitutionally retaliated against the American Bar Association by terminating grants for a program aimed at helping victims of domestic violence, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Five grants from DOJ’s Office on Violence Against Women to the ABA’s Commission on Domestic and Sexual Violence totaling $3.2 million must be reinstated and fully paid out, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled.” * Judge Hannah C. Dugan’s indictment: “The Wisconsin judge arrested last month and accused of helping an undocumented immigrant evade federal agents was indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday on charges of concealing a person from arrest and obstruction of proceedings.” * Just so we’re all clear, the public should know that contaminated waters with high levels of E. coli cannot be identified just by looking at them: “Fox News host Jesse Watters on Tuesday defended Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s recent swim in Washington, D.C.’s, Rock Creek, saying it ‘looks clean.”” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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